Vulnerability of Young Romanian Women to Trafficking in Human Beings

Romania is one of the main countries of origin in South Eastern Europe for victims of trafficking, most of whom are trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation. The number of trafficking cases and their dynamics in Romania over the last few years speak of a reality that has already settled in.Could anybody become a victim of trafficking? Is just any woman a potential victim of trafficking? The answers to these questions can be useful instruments to fight trafficking from the ground and to organize prevention efforts. Knowing who the potential victims are can also assist the law enforcement with the profiling of traffickers after their victims.Who are these unlucky migrants? Who are the women who end up in a trap as forced prostitutes? What exactly makes one person more vulnerable to trafficking than another? This paper will try to provide some answers. It will look not only at individual attributes, but also at environmental factors - the family and the community, since the way young women grow up or the way school and family instil values and attitudes in the young are crucial for their future success or failure.